Palm Acquires E-mail Leader Actual Software Corporation; Deal Extends Palm's Leadership in Handheld Computing; Expands E-mail Communications Capabilities

Business Wire, June 6, 2000

Business Editors & High Tech Writers

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 6, 2000

Extending its leadership in the handheld computing market, Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq: PALM) today announced a definitive agreement to purchase Actual Software Corporation of Andover, Mass.

Actual Software is a leading provider of e-mail solutions for the Palm OS (R) platform and is the provider of the award-winning MultiMail (R) line of products. The acquisition is the second for Palm as an independent company, following last week's announcement of Palm's agreement to acquire Internet-calendar leader Anyday.com.

"Palm is committed to delivering robust, industry-leading communications capabilities to our customers," stated Alan Kessler, chief operating officer, Platform and Products, for Palm, Inc. "This acquisition brings Palm not only world-class e-mail clients and conduits today, but also some of the industry's top talent and engineering expertise to help us drive the development of next-generation handheld mail and messaging solutions."

Kessler added, "The acquisition accelerates our momentum in offering customers significant improvements in handheld computing and communications capabilities, whether through our own technology development, acquisition, or combinations of both. We will continue to raise the bar and build on our leadership in this fast-growing market."

In the area of e-mail communications, one of Palm's priorities is to provide handheld computer customers with a universal, seamless e-mail client, featuring an industry-leading user interface, application conduits, functionality and management. Many solution developers have taken advantage of the Palm OS platform and MultiMail's open architecture to develop more advanced capabilities. Palm enthusiastically supports these and other developers as they add their own unique capabilities to the Palm OS platform.

Palm intends to offer integrated solutions that include Actual Software's client and conduit technology to reach these goals and deliver enhanced e-mail solutions across its entire product line. Customers can expect to see solutions from Palm that include various MultiMail products over the coming months.

Actual Software's MultiMail product line today offers enterprise and consumer customers a robust e-mail client and conduit solution. This combination provides users with direct network access to POP3 and IMAP4 mail systems, while also supporting mail access via Palm's HotSync(R) technology. Unlike pager-based solutions, MultiMail enables a mobile user to sort, file, and otherwise manage e-mail, in addition to simple read/reply/forward capabilities.

Acquisition Details

The acquisition of Actual Software closed in the fourth quarter of Palm's fiscal 2000. Actual Software employees will continue to work from current headquarters in Andover, Mass. Palm intends to continue to sell Actual Software's products independently for the near term and expects to deliver new products under the Palm brand in the future.

Additional information about this announcement can be found on www.palm.com and www.actualsoft.com.

About Actual Software Corp.

Actual Software Corp., the leading provider of mail solutions for the Palm OS platform, has headquarters in Andover, Mass. The company was founded in 1997 by Lorraine Wheeler and Mark Lussier. The company's focus is on bringing the very best connectivity solutions to handheld computing customers.

About Palm, Inc.

Palm, Inc. is the leading provider of handheld computing devices (IDC, Dec 1999), including the Palm(TM) III, Palm V and Palm VII series of handheld computers. The Palm OS platform is the foundation for the industry-leading handheld computers from the company as well as products from its strategic partners such as IBM, QUALCOMM, Franklin Covey, Handspring, TRG and Symbol Technologies. Platform licensees also include Sony and Nokia. Designed to support the increasingly mobile and geographically dispersed nature of information management, the company's handheld solutions allow people to carry their most critical information in their pockets.

This press release includes forward-looking statements, including statements about the employment of Actual Software employees, functionality to be made available by combining Palm and Actual Software technology, and availability of future products and solutions. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause future events to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include the ability of Palm to successfully integrate Actual Software, possible development or marketing delays with the products and solutions to be offered, potential defects in the products and solutions to be developed and the acceptance by the market of these products and solutions.

Palm OS and HotSync are registered trademarks, and Palm is a trademark of Palm, Inc. All other brands and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.